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Starscream (Unicron Trilogy)
Starscream is a member of the Decepticons and a major antagonist in the Transformers Unicron Trilogy anime series. Whilst he is a somewhat anti-heroic character in Armada, who even joined the Autobots at one point, in Energon ''and ''Cybertron sequel series he becomes a straight-up villain. He serves as a secondary antagonist in Armada and Energon, and one of the two main antagonists of Cybertron. Starscream is initially presented as Megatron's second-in-command in Armada, though by the events of Cybertron, he betrays Megatron and forms his own Decepticon army. He was voiced by , who also played Blob in X-Men: Evolution. History Origin In the opening episode "First Encounter", a brief history is provided about the Transformer civil war. Having fruitlessly fought for dominion of Cybertron for millions of years the Autobots and the Decepticons achieved nothing but immense casualties since the balance of power was constantly shifting been the two factions. Caught up in the conflict was the third race of transformers, called the Minicons. Though much smaller than their Decepticon and Autobot counterparts, the Minicons, who were also known as smart tools, had the ability to 'powerlinx' with the larger transformers providing exceptional power-boosts to their weapons and vehicular modes. Eventually, a truce was called, with the Autobots and Decepticons allowing the Minicons to depart Cybertron in peace so that they could no longer be caught up in the conflict. Now millions of years later, Megatron violated the terms of that truce and personally led a contingent of Decepticons to Earth in order to find as many Minicons as possible. It was noted that if the Decepticons (including Starscream) acquired more Minicons than the Autobots, then nothing in the cosmos could stand against them. ''Armada'' Starscream was among the first group of Decepticons to arrive on Earth, the others being his master Megatron, Demolishor and Cyclonus. They were followed by a group of Autobots led by Optimus Prime. During the early stages of the conflict, Starscream appeared to serve as Megatron's second-in-command, albeit unofficially. To avoid drawing the attention of the planet's natives, the Autobots and Decepticons adopted vehicular modes, allowing them to hide in plain sight. Starscream took the form of a fighter jet, making him one of only two transformers in the early series capable of flying, the other being fellow Decepticon, Cyclonus. Starscream was the last member of the main-cast to acquire a Minicon partner, a fact which greatly annoyed him. He finally achieved his goal in the episode Jungle where a Minicon panel was found resting on the branch of a giant redwood tree. Whilst the other Transformers engage one another, Starscream, fed up with being denied a partner, uses the distraction to slice down the tree and claim the panel for himself. He then activates the Minicon, turning it into his personal servant. He dubs this Minicon, a little red robot that can transform into a formula-one racing car, Swindle. The two then combine, with Swindle providing an exceptional power boost to Starscream's plasma guns. With a single strike, he almost manages to eviscerate not only the Autobots but his fellow Decepticons as well. Before returning back to base, Starscream tells the Autobots that they had better watch out for him since he is now a much more dangerous adversary, a fact that Optimus Prime notes to be perfectly true. Later in a train session, Starscream boasts gleefully that he is now even more powerful than Megatron, a declaration the Decepticon leader does not take kindly too. A development soon arises when the Transformers learn about the existence of three Minicon super weapons, the StarSaber, the SkyBoom Shield and the Requiem Blaster. Whilst the Autobots see these as dangerous weapons, Megatron, Starscream and the other Decepticons see an opportunity to turn the war in their favour. The first to emerge is the Starsaber. Whilst the Decepticons acquire the first Minicon, the Autobots are able to find the other two. As such the Decepticons launch a daring invasion of the Autobots base in a bid to acquire the sabre but it ends up falling into the hands of the Autobot Hot Shot. As a result, the Decepticons suffer a string of defeats, with Starscream ending up losing one of his arms in one of the confrontations. He manages to repair it and makes it clear he is set on acquiring the sword for himself, which thanks to the treachery of the double agent Sideways, he manages to achieve. The tide turns in Decepticons favour as a result but Starscream is soon forced to give up the Star Saber, when Megatron stages a scene to make it look like Starscream had attacked him. In order to prove his loyalty, Starscream was forced to hand over the weapon to his lord and master. Starscream was left bitter enraged by this development, a fact that Sideways quickly exploited. Following a defeat at the hands of the Autobots, Megatron brutally beat Starscream to within an inch of his life. Spurred on by Sideways manipulations (in a bid to keep the Decepticons divided), Starscream challenged Megatron to a duel for leadership of the Decepticons. Though he held his ground reasonably well, he was eventually bested by Megatron, leaving nobody in any doubt as to who was the more powerful warrior. Starscream continued to fight alongside his comrades, though due to the arrival of new transformers (including Jetfire, Blur and Tidal Wave) and Starscream revealing Sideways duplicity, the fight gradually began to turn in the Autobots favour. When the Autobots acquire the Requiem Blaster, Thrust comes up with a plan, enabling the Decepticons to steal the Blaster from the Autobots base by using Starscream to lure out the Autobots out. Surrounded, Starscream requested aid from his fellow Decepticons but they had abandoned him and while he had the Autobots distracted, they invaded the Autobot base and successfully stole the Requiem Blaster. Starscream eventually returned to base, he had to take the long route as the Decepticons closed the warp gate. He furiously attacked Thrust for leaving him behind and only stopped when Megatron ordered him to do so. He obeyed his leaders indifferent command to repair himself but was interrupted by Demolisher who ordered him to hand over the Star Saber Minicons to Megatron. A clearly unhappy Starscream scared Demolisher off but promised to take them to Megatron himself. However, as he approached he heard Megatron and Thrust mocking his abilities and loyalty, before making it clear they intended to sacrifice Starscream. Enraged, Starscream activated the Star Saber and his power canons then went on a rampage through the Decepticon base, attacking his former comrades. Starscream then escaped to Earth and was pursued by Tidal Wave. When even the might of the powerlinxed Optimus and Jetfire did not halt the massive Decepticon, Starscream threw the Star Saber to Optimus allowing the Autobots to win the battle. Surrendering to Hot Shot and Sideswipe, Starscream was taken to Autobot headquarters. At the behest of the kids, Optimus allowed Starscream to join the Autobots (though a number of them particularly Hot Shot remained distrustful) and, to prove his sincerity, Starscream allowed the Autobots to analyze the contents of his databanks. Using Starscream's information, the Autobots mounted an assault on the Decepticon base and freed the Mini-Cons the Decepticons were forced to work for them. Though he proved a valuable addition to the team, it was clear that Starscream was still a Decepticon at heart (spark). He did not share the peaceful views of his new comrades and actively sought to destroy Megatron for what he had done to him. This led him into trouble with Optimus and Jetfire, who charged him with insubordination. During this time he was comforted by Swindle, the Air Defence Minicons and Alexis but his temper drove them away. Never the less, he soon proves himself to the Autobots by convincing a newly found Minicon to open fire on the Decepticons. After escaping the battle he is thanked by Alexis who hopes that he will soon become a true Autobot. Her hopes are soon dashed, however as Starscream is still in doubt about his actions and some of the Autobots (particularly Hot Shot) make it clear they still do not trust him, though Optimus is perfectly willing to give him a chance and wants to use this opportunity to learn how they could potentially befriend the Decepticons, which, in turn, could stop the war. The kids likewise share this opinion having made medalions out a strange rock Starscream aquired from Mars, and a crudely stitched chamois to clean the Star Saber with. It is at this moment that Starscream is contacted by Thrust, who promises Starscream the chance to overthrow Megatron, if he rejoins the Decepticons, bringing the Skyboom Shield and the Star Saber with him to regain Megatrons recognition. Starscream seriously considers this, and after being insulted by Hot Shot (who later regrets this decision) decides that trying to win favour with the Autobots is useless. Confronting Thrust in the next engagement, Starscream sincerely tries to kill him, but finds himself unable to do so. Manipulated by Thrusts assumption that he has grown weak, Starscream makes his choice. He steals the Skyboom Shield from the Autobots, as Smokescreen throws it towards Optimus, taking it and the Sky Boom shield to barter his way back into the Decepticons. The children are clearly hurt by this, with Rad, Carlos, Fred and Billy throwing away their rocks in disgust. Alexis, on the other hand, keeps hers, with herself and Hot Shot repeatedly asking "Why Starscream, why?" After handing the shield and sword over to Megatron, Starscream is welcomed back into the Decepticon ranks, much to the chagrin of the other Decepticons. Having proven himself treacherous in his master's eyes, Starscream is ordered by Megatron, Starscream is ordered to aim the Decepticons new weapon, the Hydra Cannon, which will be powered by the three Minicon super weapons and target the Earth. Starscream is clearly conflicted by this but obeys his orders. When Optimus and Jetfire attack the cannon Starscream is ordered to defend it from his erstwhile allies. Knocked out of the conflict, Starscream regains consciousness following the death of Optimus Prime and is surprised to find the Earth still intact. Their mission failed, the Decepticons begin the long journey across the universe back to Cybertron. While en route Starscream, Demolisher, Megatron and Tidal Wave are sucked into a mysterious portal that appears on their ship. Landing upon a strange unknown world, they are forced to do battle with Nemesis Prime, teaming up with Hot Shot and Red Alert in order to try and defeat him. Just when it looks as though they are about to be killed, the Transformers are saved by the Minicons, who reformat them with new colour schemes. Starscreams armour changes from red to blue, which he notes makes him look like fellow Decepticon Thundercracker. After escaping from Nemesis Prime, the Decepticons having returned to Cybertron set about achieving their ultimate goal of conquering the planet. The Autobots meanwhile learn about the existence of a new enemy, Unicron, who they soon realize would pose a bigger danger, not just to the Transformers but all life in the universe. As a result, Hot Shot launches a daring raid into the Decepticon headquarters and tries to convince Galvatron that the two sides should put aside their differences and unite in face of their common enemy. Though Galvatron and his comrades are dismissive, Starscream seriously considers the proposition. Things quickly unravel, and it is soon revealed that Thrust has switched his allegiance and has now sided with Unicron and Sideways against Megatron, now dubbing himself Galvatron. Starscream pursues him accompanied by Wheeljack and Hot Shot, but Thrust manages to escape from them with the help of Sideways taking the Skyboom Shield and Requiem Blaster with him, which they use to partially awaken Unicron. Having witnessed the threat of Unicron first hand, Starscream recognises that Hot Shot and Alexis were right about the danger posed by Unicron. He tries desperately to reason with Galvatron, urging that the Decepticon leader that they should accept the Autobots offer and unite with Optimus, but is rebuffed not just by his master but all of his comrades. Taking Alexis' words to heart, Starscream comes to a fundamental realisation about himself and recognises what needs to be done. When Optimus likewise tries to reason with Galvatron, the Decepticon leader suspects it is a trap and a fight soon breaks out between them. The pair are soon fired upon, a lone figure marching towards them out of the smoke. Blade in hand Starscream openly challenges Galvatron to a one on one duel, declaring that he knows the only way for the Transformers to survive Unicron is to follow Optimus. As the Autobot leader watches helplessly in the background, the two Decepticons trade blows with one another. Throughout the battle the continue exchange barbs with one another, yet Galvatron offers to spare Starscream (or at the very least spare him a long protracted death) if he surrenders, whist Starscream urges his master to side with Optimus so that they can bring an end to Unicron. The rage between them unintentionally feeds Unicron, who uses his power to devastate Cybertron's surface. The battle finally ends with Galvatron running Starscream through the chest, presumably into his spark. Starscream survives the attack, but drops to the ground exhausted, dropping his own sword which rolls away from him. It was at this moment that Galvatron realised that Starscream had never intended to win, at all and had challenged him on purpose. Delivering a passionate speech, Starscream remembered how he first came to join the Decepticons, whilst expressing his disappointment in Galvatron's lack of respect and flaws in his character (see below). Rising to his feet, Starscream implored his leader to join with Optimus and end the threat of Unicron once and for all. He then looked up to see Unicron surrounded by a series of interlinking lightening bolts. Starscream, grabbed the Star Saber still lodged in his torso, and tore it out. Optimus Prime realised what Starscream intended to do a second before it happened and pleaded with him not to do it. The Decepticon jet, however, threw the Saber back to Galvatron and activated his proton cannons in a desperate bid to attack Unicron. Screaming in defiance Starscream unleashed his full might against Unicron, detaching himself from Swindle as he did so. The planet eater, however, sent a bolt of lightening hurtling towards Starscream which struck the Decepticon full force. As Galvatron and Optimus watched in horror, Starscreams body disintegrated right in front of them. Back on the Autobot flag-ship, the Martian rock Alexis had been holding on to splintered, indicating it had some sort of link to Starscream. She and Rad ran to the nearest window, just in time to see Starscreams plasma bolts fizzle out before it could so much as strike Unicron. A small crater was left where Starscream once stood. Except for his sword, Starscreams body had been reduced to ashes leaving no trace of his existence. As Optimus and Swindle noted that Starscream fought like a brave soldier until the end, Galvatron simply stared in silence at the crater before turning to the Star Saber. As Galvatron thought about the various actions of his lost subordinate, he recalled Starscream's last sentiment; - "I tried to gain favour from you, but nothing was ever good enough. No matter how many battles I fought, you always found fault. Then I saw how Optimus treated his men, and I realized that he was a leader of integrity ... Unlike you!" Though the Saber was stolen shortly afterwards by Sideways, Starscream ultimately did not 'die' in vain. With the threat of Unicron now revealed to him, Galvatron put aside his pride and joined forces with Optimus, acknowledging that while Starscream may have committed insubordination, he had acted in the true interest of the Decepticons. Because of this, the Transformers were able to prevail, and temporarily defeat Unicron, albeit at an extreme cost. Whilst Starscream himself did not leave to see this victory he was mourned by Galvatron (who fired upon Unicron and later had Starscream present in a vision whilst under Unicron's influence) and the human children. Fred wept openly, as did Alexis who had to be comforted by Rad when she learnt what had happened to the Decepticon, who despite his faults, they considered a friend. ''Energon'' Starscream was later resurrected by Alpha Q in an unstable body, due to Alpha Q not having enough Energon to provide him with a full form. Alpha Q tasked Starscream with assassinating Optimus Prime. Starscream attempted several times to kill Optimus, but failed each time. Starscream was later sent to kill Megatron. However, Megatron had managed to gain control of the power of Unicron, which he used to attack Starscream and convert him into his loyal second-in-command. Later, when Megatron flew into the Sun created from Super Energon in an attempt to kill Unicron, Starscream stayed by his leader's side and flew into the Sun alongside him. ''Cybertron'' However, the sun collapsed a decade later, freeing Megatron and Starscream and creating a black hole that threatened to devour the entire universe. Starscream also managed to gain back his own free will and began plotting against Megatron. The two were also joined by another Decepticon named Thundercracker. The trio competed against the Autobots for the Cyber Planet Keys. While the Autobots wanted to use the Keys to close the black hole, the Decepticons only wanted to use them to gain more power. Starscream at some point stole the real Planet Map from Megatron and replaced it with a copy. He later took the Decepticons newest recruits, Ransack and Crumplezone to the planet Velocitron test their abilities against the Autobot Red Alert. Starscream later tracked down the location of the starship Atlantis, as did the Autobots. While the Autobots and the Decepticons fought, Starscream was ambushed by Sideways, who appeared to be on the Autobots' side until he turned. After the Autobots obtained the Omega Lock from the ship, Starscream called retreat as the ship exploded. Starscream later recruited both Sideways and the former Autobot Mudflap to the Decepticons, who had become disillusioned after being forced to hide on Earth. While Megatron and the others left in search of the third key using the fake map, Starcream headed to Earth, where the key's true location was. Starscream's fake map later trapped Megatron and his Decepticons (save Crumplezone) in a metallic sphere. On Earth, Starscream discovered a cavern full of imprisoned ancient Decepticons. Starscream freed the Decepticons to serve him. Starscream then had his Decepticons fly into the sky and start patrolling Earth in search of the Omega Lock and the Cyber Planet Keys. The Autobots attempted to fight Starscream directly, but Starscream managed to wound Optimus Prime and force them to retreat. Starscream followed the Autobots back to their base and attempted to steal the Omega Lock from them. Starscream fired at the Autobots human allies in order to distract Optimus Prime and allow him to claim the Omega Lock for himself. Starscream then returned to his base on a small volcanic island located in the Pacific. Starscream attached the Earth Key to the Omega Lock and absorbed Primus' energy from it, growing him to gigantic proportions and giving him a golden crown. However, Megatron appeared, having broken free from Starscream's trap. Megatron soon left the battlefield to focus on acquiring the Omega Lock, leaving the Autobots to deal with Starscream. While Starscream at first appeared to have the advantage, Optimus and Wing Saber combined into Sonic Wing Mode and used their united powers to defeat Starscream. Sideways then teleported him and Starscream to the remains of the Atlantis. Starscream soon awoke and learned from Sideways that the Autobots had used the Omega Lock to transform Cybertron into Primus. Starscream attempted to fight Primus, but was blasted away by Primus's cannons. While this was happening, Sideways abducted the Mini-Con, Jolt and obtained the location of the fourth Cyber Planet Key from his memory-banks. Starscream went back to Cybertron soon after to try and reobtain the Omega Lock. He encountered his former minion, Thunderblast, and ordered her to give him the Omega Lock. Thunderblast attempted get Starscream to come to planet's surface by saying she needed help carrying the lock. Starscream was then confronted by Megatron and the two fought. However, Starscream retreated when the Autobots entered the battle. Starscream later sensed Primus's reawakening. When the god attempted to hold off the black hole by firing into it, Starscream teleported in front of the blast and absorbed the energy. The energy caused Starscream to grow even larger, to the point where he was equal to the size of Primus. With his new power, Starscream attempted to fight Primus, but was defeated by the god again using weapons converted from Cybertron's moons. Using data gathered from Jolt's memory, Starscream took the Atlantis through a spacial warp the ended at Gigantion. Seeing that the Autobots had also arrived, Starscream opened fire on them, causing the Autobots to flee. Arriving on the surface, Starscream set the Atlantis in a crevasse. The Autobots launched an attack on the ship, and Gigantion native Quickmix barried the ship and Starscream under cement. However, this only served to stall the Decepticon, as Starscream easily managed to blast his way out of the rubble. Starscream later set out to claim the fourth Cyber Planet Key in its resting place in the starship Lemuria. However, the Autobot Landmine claimed the Key first and used its power to grow himself giant, allowing him to blast Starscream away. Starscream later returned to challenge Megatron (now Galvatron) for possession of the Omega Lock. Starscream and Galvatron eventually channeled their energies to blast each other, resulting in Starscream being blasted into another dimension along with Sideways and Soundwave. After Galvatron's plan was foiled and the black hole was closed, Starscream reached out across dimensions to mock his former leader, who was floating aimlessly around in space, calling Galvatron out for giving up so easily. Starscream's taunts renewed Galvatron's ambition and inspired him to fight Optimus Prime one last time. Later, when the Autobots began working on their plans for a galaxy-wide space bridge, the Autobot Wing Saber radioed to Optimus Prime and the other Autobots to inform them that he had picked up a lead on Starscream's whereabouts. Upon hearing this, Landmine and a reformed Mudflap went to go help him track down Starscream. Personality Armada Over the course of Armada, Starscream engaged his opponents on multiple occasions in their search for the Minicons. Though he proved himself repeatedly to be a capable warrior, he was frequently chastised and downtrodden by Megatron and the other Decepticons, a fact which he took deeply to heart (or spark if you want to be technical). This frequent berating, coupled with no small amount physical abuse eventually caused Starscream to question his allegiance, a fact he noted could have been avoided if Megatron/Galvatron just showed him some respect. Starscream also appeared to have a disliking towards his Decepticons comrades, admitting on one occasion that he did not view his fellow soldier, Demolisher as a friend. Despite this, he cared about them more than Megatron as he was often disgusted with his leader's treatment of his soldiers. However, he was very distrustful towards newly arrived Decepticons specifically Scavenger, Sideways and Thrust. His assumptions turned out to be correct since Scavenger and Sideways were both double agents (working for the Autobots and Unicron respectfully) and Thrust eventually betrayed the Decepticons in order to side with Sideways. Unlike most of his fellow Decepticons, he appeared to show some level of affection for the smaller Transformers. He allowed the Star Saber Minicons to share a bath with him and saved Swindle from the hands of both Blur and Unicron. Energon In Energon, Starscream is revived but has his memories wiped and thus loses his original personality, later becoming second-in-command to Megatron once more. As a result of being brainwashed, Starscream served Megatron loyally and even chose to follow him to his death when he plunged himself into a sun to destroy Unicron. Aside from his loyalty to Megatron, Starscream did not have much of a personality, yet still maintained his sense honor and loyalty to the other Decepticons, even the treachous Shockblast, whom he often defended from Megatron's wrath. Cybertron In Cybertron, Starscream regains his free will and memories, but becomes much more ruthless and cold-hearted, caring for nobody but himself. Having split off from Megatron's Decepticons, Starscream seeks nothing less than to use the Cyber Planet Keys to dominate the universe under his will. He is shown to be an incredibly crafty manipulator, managing to outmaneuver both the Autobots and his old master Megatron on several occasions. After absorbing the power of the Omega Lock and three of the Cyber Planet Keys Starscream becomes much more unhinged and crazier as well, attempting to assault the Transformers' own creator Primus on several occasions and delusionally believing himself to be "Emperor of the Universe" and seemingly equivalent to a god. Despite his antagonism towards Megatron, Starscream seems to have some respect for his former boss, appearing to him in spirit after he was defeated by the Autobots to encourage him to keep on fighting. Gallery Starscream and Megatron (Rebellion (Armada)).jpg Starscream, Cyclonus and Demolishor (Ep. 30).jpg Cyclonus with Starscream.jpg File:Puppet_i_look_like_thundercracker.jpg|Starscream after gaining his powerlinx colors, saying that he looks like Thundercracker. Starscream and Bot-spider..jpg File:Cramp_starscream_dies.jpg|Starscream getting killed by Unicron. Starscream and Demolishor (Ep. 13).jpg|Starscream trying to get Demolishor to talk. Snow Cat, Starscream & Demolishor.png Snow Cat, Starscream and Demolishor.png Starscream and Galvatron (The Sun).jpg Trivia *Starscream is very similar to Terrorsaur from Transformers: Beast Wars and G1 Starscream from the original Transformers TV show as they all have transformation of flight, have a burning hatred of their leaders and all get killed, though unlike G1 Starscream and Terrorsaur, this version of Starscream is revived in Energon. *Starscream's powerlinx colors in Armada is based on G1 Thundercracker's color scheme. *Starscream's super mode colors in Energon is based on G1 Starscream's color scheme. *In the video games, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS/Wii U and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, one of R.O.B.'s alternate costumes resembles Armada Starscream's powerlinx colors. 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